Family Relationship And Trauma In Bastard Out Of Carolina

This thesis is intended to give an interpretation of the traumatic experiences of Bone, the protagonist in Bastard Out of Carolina, within the frame of trauma theory. It argues that all Bone’s traumatic experiences—absence of father, stepfather’s sexual and physical abuses, and mother’s indifference to her—are attributed to her family dysfunction. Bone is hurt so much that she demonstrates such traumatic symptoms as silence, self-blame, and fantasy. She would have been ruined if her uncles and aunts had not provided her with love and safety, relieved her pain and helped her build up her subjectivity and confidence, which creates the chance of recovering from her traumatic experience.This thesis comes to a conclusion that dysfunctional family relationship may have lifelong influences on children. To help children recover from trauma brought by dysfunctional family relationship,the children’s relatives should create environments in which children feel safe and secure and help them establish positive relationship with others people so that children can build up their confidence and trust in others. This is the only way children who suffer trauma work through trauma though we are not sure that they will definitely and completely recover from trauma. At least they, like Bone, have the chance of walking on the way to recovery.